


The Announcement

by suezahn



Series: Kismet [16]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Original Trilogy, Star Wars Post-Return of the Jedi
Genre: Drunkenness, Engagement, F/M, Happy Ending, Humor, Love, Marriage, Romance, Sexy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-26
Updated: 2017-10-26
Packaged: 2019-01-23 14:25:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,385
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12509444
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/suezahn/pseuds/suezahn
Summary: A tipsy conversation following the celebration of their engagement announcement.





	The Announcement

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: All characters depicted herein are the property of Lucasfilm, Disney, etc. My only profit is in the form of readers' feedback. Please be generous!
> 
> Note: This story was originally written in 2011 and has now be revised and updated for consistency with the rest of the Kismet Series. A very special thank-you to my lovely proofreaders: Erin Darroch and Marjorie Joyce.

Love one another and you will be happy.  It’s as simple and as difficult as that. _  
_ —Michael Leunig

 

It’s so great to find that one special person you want to annoy for the rest of your life.  
—Rita Rudner

* * *

 

After watching with muffled amusement as Leia Organa attempted for the third time to slide the entrance key into the narrow slot beside their apartment door, Han Solo reached around her to gently take the key away. “I think maybe somebody’s had a little too much to drink.”

She sent him a rather messy version of her usual indignant glare as a reward. “I’ve only had just enough, thank you very much. It’s not my fault they make these—”

Having mastered the art of personal navigation while buzzed during his less prestigious days as a youth, Han already had the door open and was guiding his now-official fiancée into the reception area of their suite.

“—things so difficult to open,” she continued to protest after the fact. She successfully passed through the doorway, but then appeared to stumble on the pattern in the carpeting. Han was in the right place at the right time to catch her, keeping her from sprawling in a heap at his feet. Now clinging to him, she giggled. “You. Are. Good at that!”

“Years of practice, Sweetheart. I also think it’s time I put you to bed.”

“Best idea I’ve heard all night!” Leia proclaimed, beaming up at him as her fingers started tugging at his belt and the closure of his dress pants.

Under normal circumstances he would be game for that sort of spontaneity, but tonight Han was all about comfort. In one smooth move, he scooped the petite woman up in his arms and walked through the main living room toward the bedroom at the far end. “Come on, Your Highness. I’d rather carry you now than carry you later.”

With one arm around his neck, she flung out the other to sweep the room in a grand gesture. “This is so much better than a hover cab. I insist you carry me everywhere from now on.”

Rolling his eyes, Han chuckled. “Right. I’ll mention that in the morning when you’re sober.” He maneuvered them through the entrance into their sleeping chamber and deposited her on the foot of the large bed.

She fell back onto the mattress and her bare arms flopped out at her sides as she let out a heavy sigh. Then she grew very still. “Ohhh, Han, I think the bed is moving.”

“That’s what I was afraid of. Just take a deep breath, and for Kest’s sake, don’t close your eyes. I’ll be right back.”

As Han made for the private fresher attached to bedroom suite and began running the cold water tap to fill a glass and dampen a hand towel, he was reminded of another time, during the early years of the war, when their cell of the Rebellion had been based on Serricci.

The occasion of Luke’s passage into Majority—and Leia’s, too, though few had realized it—had triggered a party, which had resulted in a similar situation.  His relationship with Leia at that time couldn’t have been more different, but with the alcohol-assisted loosening of inhibitions, their shared attraction and repressed desires had come to the fore. Had he been a man of lesser morals and survival instincts, he might have taken advantage of that situation. But already, even in those early days, he’d felt a combination of respect for her and a growing need to gain her approval that had held him in check. In retrospect, he knew it had been a watershed moment in their zigzag of a romance, even if she’d displayed little recall of the event. In fact, their relationship had continued to plod along at a teeth-grindingly slow pace over the following months until that mission to Ord Mantell, despite his knowing the truth all along.

His bride-to-be packed so much personality into such a tiny frame that sometimes Han forgot how low her intoxicant tolerance was, particularly on nights like this, when they had a good reason to celebrate and the drinks flowed freely. He probably should have monitored her intake a little closer, but like everyone else, he’d been caught up in the enthusiasm and nobody had gone with an empty glass for long. Now he just hoped this perfect night wouldn’t be topped off with a puking princess.

With water and towel in hand, he stepped back into the room to find Leia hadn’t moved. She remained sprawled out on her back, legs dangling over the edge but not quite reaching the floor, her hands bunching up fistfuls of the coverlet. She’d resumed the loud humming of one of the songs they’d danced to earlier. Hoping that meant she’d passed the critical stage, he paused to admire the tableau.

Leia had looked stunning tonight, and he’d felt equal parts proud and humble to have her at his side as they’d received their guests,  mingling and dancing into the late hours. She was dressed in a flattering strapless shimmersilk gown so dark green it was almost black, with a bodice just low enough and a bottom hem just high enough to tastefully display some of her best features. Her long chestnut hair was swept up in an artful arrangement of cascading swirls that could make an architect swoon, and the beatific smile she’d worn all evening was still plastered across her face.

“Hmmm, just the way I like her,” Han contemplated aloud, enjoying her anything-but-stately display now.

He set the glass and towel on the bedside table, then walked around to the foot of the bed and sat on the edge beside her. He bent slightly to pick up her closest ankle, then took his time running his hands down the smooth skin of her calf, appreciating the muscled curve before easing off the high-heeled shoe that had added a good two inches to her short stature. He heard her humming change into a purr, and with that encouragement, he grinned and slowed down even more as he repeated the action on her other leg. However, in the time it took him to kick off his own shoes, then shed his black dress jacket and toss it on to a chair in a distant corner, her purring had stopped. A blissfully blank expression was settling over her features.

As she’d once stridently told him years ago, princesses didn’t pass out. He would have to remind her of that come the morning when she asked why she’d fallen asleep still in this state.

He gazed down at Leia for a long moment, then reached across the bed to grab a pillow before stretching out onto his back next to her, not bothering to undress any further. It had been a long, exhilarating, and exhausting night; there was irony in their having no stamina left to officially consummate the deal.

Just as Han was resigning himself to the fact that the night’s festivities had ended, Leia stirred.

“Han…?” She rolled onto her side to nestle up against him and nuzzle his neck.

He drew her closer into his arms. “Yeah?”

“I need to tell you something.”

“Tell me anything you want, Princess.”

“It’s serious.”

Han cracked open one wary eye to peer down at her. He was pretty sure he already knew her darkest secrets, but she was certainly capable of surprising him.

“I love you,” she announced as if it were the first time she’d ever said the words. Then she laughed. “I may have told you that already, though.” 

“Not in the past fifteen minutes….”

“Han.…” She sighed into his chest, then whispered, “We just announced to the galaxy that we’re getting married. _Us_.” Threads of awe and solemnity were woven throughout her sleepy voice.

That was a sentiment he fully shared. He lifted his head just enough to kiss the top of her head, where her elegant tresses had already begun to unravel.

“Yeah, that’s pretty serious, Sweetheart.”

Han felt her relax as she fell silent once more. After an evening filled with music and laughter and the dull roar of countless conversations, the peace that surrounded them now felt like being wrapped together in the softest blanket.

 

**The End**

 


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